Update on Tasting Rooms – Trick or Treat
By Marisa D'Vari | April 12th, 2007 | Category: News | No Comments »Recently I posted the article I wrote about tasting room charges on Blogcritics.org and it's attracted a rather heated response in terms of comments.
The article focuses on the possibility of wineries using their tasting rooms as profit centers ... curious to hear your thoughts! Here are some of the responses ...
You are so right! Recently, I was at a unique wine shop that "rewarded" shoppers in two ways: 1) when they bought more than 12 bottles, they got a HUGE discount on every bottle and they didn't all have to be the same wine. 2) they received "points" they could use for tastings. Sweet!
World Market was recently offering a big discount for purchases of four or more bottles (matching or not). I should have jumped on it!
I think the problem is that vintners are not economists, and some are lying. Yes, it's a good idea to charge *something*, to screen out the freeloaders and so on. But some of them are using that excuse but then charging enough to more than cover their costs. They've turned a marketing expense into a profit center, and aren't being up-front about it.
To achieve the benefits they're claiming, they wouldn't have to charge much at all. Freeloaders tend to be freeloaders, not cheaploaders, so charging even very little would accomplish the same thing. Applying the cost of the tasting as a credit toward purchases that same day is another brilliant move that more wineries ought to try.
Great article, thanks!
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The best tasting room policy is when the fee can be applied to the purchase of wine. This is a "Win-Win" situation for both the winery and the visitor to the tasting room. I am surprised at how few wineries have adopted this type of tasting fee.